AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Ennahda Movement and Tunisian media announced that a court in the country sentenced Rached Ghannouchi and several others to prison on charges of so-called "terrorist activity."
Ghannouchi and other Ennahda figures were accused in this case of forming a so-called "secret security apparatus" for the movement.
The sentences include life imprisonment plus an additional 30 years for the 84-year-old Ghannouchi, life imprisonment plus 32 years for retired officer Kamel Bedoui, and 42 years for former Prime Minister Ali Laarayedh.
Laarayedh has been in prison since 2022 and has faced charges in a separate case known as the "case of aiding the dispatch of fighters to Iraq and Syria."
Tunisian authorities arrested Ghannouchi in 2023, and before yesterday's sentence, the total sentences issued against him in several cases, including the so-called "conspiracy against state security" case, had already exceeded 40 years.
Critics emphasize that the sentences issued against opposition figures and personalities in Tunisia are politically motivated.
Reaction of the Ennahda Movement
The Islamic Ennahda Movement described this verdict as "lacking the most fundamental requirements and conditions of justice."
Ennahda won elections held after the 2011 revolution in Tunisia and played a key role in the country's political life for nearly a decade.
According to this report, several Tunisian and international non-governmental organizations have criticized restrictions on rights and freedoms in the country since President Kais Saied came to power in July 2021. Saied dismissed his prime minister and suspended parliament at that time. Subsequently, parliamentarians were elected with very limited powers.
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